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MEMBER UPDATE: Korea National Park Friendship Program for 2018

As part of an initiative to form cooperative relationships with overseas protected area management agencies, the Korea National Park Service (KNPS) has been conducting its Korea National Park Friendship Programme (KNPFP) annually since 2014. The KNPFP aims to provide opportunities for overseas park rangers to gain on-the-ground experience in national park management through exchange with Korea’s national park professionals.

Since its inception, 24 participants from China, Malaysia, Mongolia and Thailand have taken part in the KNPFP. This year, from 3 to 30 June 2018, the fifth KNPFP will welcome 15 participants, 11 of whom will be from APAP Member countries Bhutan, China, Mongolia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

The programme lasts for one month, and includes three weeks of field work in Korea’s national parks. KNPFP participants gain experience in various aspects of protected areas management, including natural and cultural resources conservation, park planning and patrolling, education and eco-tourism, community engagement, and park visitors and facilities management. Through the duration of the programme, Korean park rangers work directly with participants to share knowledge and experience and build a closer partnership.

A brief introductory video, including interviews with the programme’s 2017 participants, can be viewed HERE.

Korea National Park Service (KNPS) is a professional protected area management organisation established in 1987. It manages around thirty percent of Korea’s protected areas including 21 national parks. Guided by its vision: ‘Leading Protected Areas Management by Connecting Nature, People, and the Future’, KNPS commits its resources to achieving conservation and sustainable use of national parks, and provides support to locally-managed protected areas.

The Asia Protected Areas Partnership is generously supported by the Ministry of Environment Republic of Korea, the Korea National Park Service and the Ministry of the Environment Japan.